Just been sales shopping, and succeeded in getting a new long sleeved top and a pair of jeans, both at majorly reduced prices (top marks to D2). I’ve also been looking for the perfect birthday gift for the girl who has everything – but to no avail. Suggestions? (I already have a couple of ideas starting to form).

In a day largely lacking in highlights, today I purchased a shiny new clock radio to replace an extremely ancient and largely dysfunctional model. The most expensive one in the shop, of course. And I had to contend with the rigours of halfwit staff in Dixons too.

Blimey. What a year. It’s certainly not going to be a year that I forget in a hurry. There have been high points and low points. Anyone who has been reading this site throughout the year will know that. But, as the year draws to a close, it is a good time to look back, take stock, perhaps try to draw some conclusions, and then look forward, make plans, carry through ideas.

The event that defined the year on a personal level, needless to say, was Andrea leaving me for Kev. I’ve never experienced anything like that, and wouldn’t want to again. But, at the time, someone came out with the old platitiude: “that which doesn’t kill you makes you stronger”. I think I laughed in their face at the time, but there is probably quite a bit of truth in it. Not that I’m recommending that, if you want to become a more rounded person, you should get your heart mangled in a particularly bloody and painful way. But it is true to say that if something horrid happens, you really must make a firm effort to build on it. Otherwise you end up wallowing in a pit of your own self pity. And I did that – the wallowing. It really wasn’t until later in the year that I finally began dragging myself upwards and onwards.

The whole experience has changed me. And one of the ways it has changed me is that it has improved my self-confidence a little. I’ve got a long way to go in that respect, but there is no way that I’d have had the confidence to do some of the things I have done unless I’d had the drive to do so – and that drive was born out of a desire to improve on the crappy situation I found myself in in January.

But what else went on? It would be rude not to mention that I’ve dated some amazing girls, nearly all of whom I’m now building good friendships with (I won’t name names to protect the innocent) – in fact, there is a running joke that I’ve dated more girls this year than in the whole of my life before! That’s not actually true, but let’s say that my ego was boosted during the course of the year.

But more importantly, I’ve made some brilliant new friends, and built on and strengthened some existing relationships. I’ve become established in the Nags as a regular, with many new friends and acquaintances there – Dave, Gary, Malcolm, Cath; our little crowd at college has grown closer together – especially Hev; I met and became friends with several other bloggers – Meg, Mo, Marcia, Nick, Bella; and a few people who were merely acquaintances before have become good and trusted friends – Bren, Greg, Aris, Julie.

However, special mentions must go to two people in particular: Paul F and Sarah, who have, in different ways, been brilliant friends throughout this year. I hope I’ve repaid at least some of that.

What about other events? Well, I passed my Advanced Certificate in Marketing (it hangs on the wall above this desk), and continued into the Post Graduate Diploma. The course is difficult and hard work, but I’m determined to finish it. Hopefuly, by the time I write my review for 2002, the diploma will be hanging above this desk as well.

I turned thirty. Not half as scary as people make out. To be honest, my twenties weren’t bad, but they weren’t amazingly brilliant either – like most people, a mixture of good times and bad. But I have a feeling that my thirties are going to be good – of course some bad things will happen, but I feel that by the end of this decade I will be a much better person in a much stronger position than I am now.

Work finally lost the last vestiges of appeal that it had. I really must make an effort in 2002 to find a new challenge, either in my current environment or in pastures new. That might become easier after I’ve finished my diploma.

And then there is the flat too – I’m determined to make more of an effort to finish doing it up – new windows first, I think.

I’m definitely going to take a holiday in 2002 – I didn’t have one in 2001 (apart from the Peak District jaunt, which doesn’t really count). Revisiting Lisbon is a possibility (and has been seriously discussed), and maybe somewhere new – Prague perhaps, or Italy.

And a girlfriend. That’d be good. I know who I’d like it to be too. Maybe a lottery win as well. And the flying car, Nobel Peace Prize, knighthood and personal spaceship.

Dream on.

And Grayblog. Yep, it’ll still be here this time next year. It’ll be strange to look back to this day by then – lots of things will have happened, circumstances will have changed. Maybe I’ll have changed too. Who knows?

Beer tonight with Kearn, his brother Ben, Helen, Phil, Paul F and assorted other Nags regulars. The roads and pavements are covered in ice – if you are travelling tonight or early tomorrow, please take care.

Went to Sacha’s house-cooling last night, which featured Ian, DA, DAGS, Kearn, Matt, Kev, Andrea and Sacha’s friends Russell and Sarah (need to be careful, as Russell works for the Sun – I could be headline news). Matt, Kearn and I then decamped to the Nags, where we met up with Paul F and caught sight of Sally, Viv, Cath, Dave, Malcolm and several others. I got hideously drunk – probably due to the two blue Russians I had at the end of the evening – and feel decidedly fuzzy around the edges this morning.

<Clangers&gt What do you do if teapots fall from space and crash into your planet and you want them all to leave? Simple: send one teapot off in a musical helicopter, and all the rest will follow. </Clangers>